Rossall Coast Protection Scheme

The Rossall Coast Protection Scheme is the UK’s biggest sea defence programme, offering protection to over 7000 homes across the Rossall area. The sea defence covers 2km of the coast from Westway to Fleetwood Golf Course and opened in June 2018 following four years of construction.

The ambitious £63 million project almost doubled the width of the existing promenade and incorporated comprehensive three-tier protection. The first tier comprises a revetment of aesthetically pleasing masonry, designed to be the first point of erosion contact. The secondary defence is multipurpose, as it provides a stepped sea defence that doubles as a pleasing viewing spot for the Irish Sea. The next tier of the sea defence is a rear flood wall, followed by the Larkholme Grasslands which offer another overflow section.

As the work was undertaken, local schoolchildren left their own legacy behind as they buried a water-tight time capsule below the defences. Their time capsules included photographs, magazines and information about the political climate in 2018 such as the upcoming EU referendum. It is hoped that the capsule will be discovered in 100 years - the predicted life-span of the protection scheme- and will shed some light on what life was like in the 21st Century.

The Rossall Coastal Protection Scheme is imperative to the safety and wellbeing of Fleetwood residents and businesses. Fleetwood has a history of devastating flood, notably those in 1927 and 1977 which destroyed homes, businesses and acres of agriculture on a huge scale. The 1927 flood saw both local and national fundraising, including a sizable donation from Buckingham Palace, to help the residents of Fleetwood rebuild their livelihoods. The new sea defences have already proved successful when they protected the town against Storm Eleanor in 2018.